Twitter Reactions: England enforce follow-on after Azhar Ali's unbeaten ton

Tourists need some inspiring performances to level the series.

By Tanvir Sahni

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2 Min Read

Azhar Ali
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Azhar Ali. (Photo Source: Getty Images)

Pakistan started off Day 3 at 24/3. They were trailing by 559 runs and required a big turn-around to make a comeback in this match. James Anderson, who had been in the wickets on Day 2, struck once again. He dismissed Asad Shafiq to claim his fourth wicket of the innings.

It was now time for the duo everyone had been waiting to see. It was these two men who needed to prove themselves really badly. Azhar Ali and Fawad Alam started off cautiously. After playing out the fast bowlers, the latter was dismissed by a peach of a delivery from the spinner, Dominic Bess. He needs a big knock in the second inning to justify his spot.

With a score of 75/5, it looked like another collapse for the Asian side. However, one of their best batsmen in this series, Mohammad Rizwan had just arrived. He, along with captain Azhar Ali gave the visitors a ray of hope. From a situation of 75/5, they reached 213/6 and gave their fans something to cheer for.

Azhar Ali gives a strong answer to his critics

The Pakistan skipper had recently been under the scanner. His failure to perform with the bat had put his position in doubt. Many also believed that a bad performance in the third Test could mean curtains for the man. However, instead of answering these questions himself, he allowed his bat to do the talking.

After coming in to bat at No.3, he remained not out till the very end. An unbeaten inning of 141 was a clear announcement that he was here to stay. His knock was praised by everyone as it was a high-quality inning. Rizwan too did a good job as he ended with a score of 53 runs. He would definitely feel that he missed out on an opportunity to score big, considering he was well set when he lost his wicket.

Post the wicketkeeper’s dismissal, Ali shifted to a more attacking approach. Yasir Shah chipped in with a useful 20 while the rest of the tail failed to contribute. Pakistan were eventually bowled out for 273 runs. They were still trailing by 310 runs and it was a no brainer that England would enforce the follow on. However, bad light prevented the start of the third inning.

Talking about the English bowlers, Anderson got a five-wicket haul while Stuart Broad got two wickets to his name. Chris Woakes and Dominic Bess ended with one wicket each. With the weather prediction not very good for the coming two days, the hosts would be looking to dismiss the Pakistan side as soon as they can.

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